The Little Mermaid (musical)


The Little Mermaid is a stage musical produced by Disney Theatrical, based on the animated 1989 Disney film of the same name and the classic 1837 story of the same name by Hans Christian Andersen about a mermaid who dreams of the world above the sea and gives up her voice to find true love. Its book is by Doug Wright, music by Alan Menken and lyrics by Howard Ashman, with additional lyrics by Glenn Slater. Its underwater setting and story about aquatic characters requires unusual technical designs and strategies to create gliding movements for the actors.
After a pre-Broadway tryout in Denver, Colorado from July to September 2007, the musical began Broadway previews on November 3, 2007 at the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre, replacing Disney's Beauty and the Beast. The production officially opened on January 10, 2008 and closed on August 30, 2009 after 685 performances and 50 previews. It introduced Broadway debuts by director Francesca Zambello and Sierra Boggess in the title role.
Subsequent productions have been seen in US regional theatres and internationally. A modified version of the musical with a new book and direction by Glenn Casale was developed in 2012, and this version is the basis for subsequent productions.

Development

had success with stage adaptations of its animated musical films Beauty and the Beast in 1994 and The Lion King in 1997. Thomas Schumacher, head of Disney Theatrical, proposed another adaptation, this time of the 1989 film The Little Mermaid, approaching songwriter Alan Menken, who had composed the music for the film, to be part of the production team. Schumacher initially brought on director/choreographer Matthew Bourne to helm the musical, but Bourne left when their visions on the project differed. Schumacher then approached Francesca Zambello, telling her that "We haven't found a way to do the water". Zambello's experience with the fantasy elements of opera made her open to the project, and the decision was made that there would be no water, wires or flying in the production. Playwright Doug Wright was brought on as book writer, focusing the story line on Ariel's longing not for her prince, but for "a world in which she feels truly realized in her own terms.... Her ambitions are bigger than any one man." For the songs, Menken brought on lyricist Glenn Slater, whom he'd worked with on Home on the Range, and together they wrote ten new songs for the stage musical, adding '60s rock, vaudeville and 1920s Brechtian cabaret to the sound of the show.
In creating the underwater world on stage, director Zambello asked her design team to use translucent materials to create abstract shapes and manipulate light to give the watery illusion. The design team consisted of George Tsypin for sets, Natasha Katz for lighting and Tatiana Noginova for costumes, all three of whom had previously worked with Zambello. For the performers' movements, choreographer Stephen Mear had the actors wear Heelys wheeled footwear, dubbed "merblades", while tails on sprung-steel rods, designed by Michael Curry, were attached to their hips. Sierra Boggess, who originated the role of Ariel, was an ice-skater and had no trouble with the Heelys, but the rest of the cast took some getting used to the footwear. Ariel's tail originally had a motor inside that allowed the fluke to move independently, but the mechanics made the tail heavy and loud and were removed.
Rehearsals for the Broadway production began on May 29, 2007 at the New 42nd Street Studios in New York. The cast had six weeks of rehearsals before the pre-Broadway tryout.

Reimagining

After the Broadway production under-performed at the box office and closed in 2009, director Glenn Casale was brought on to reinvent the musical for the 2012 Dutch production. He made changes to the score and book, including introducing a new song, "Daddy's Little Angel" to replace "I Want the Good Times Back", and replacing the Heelys worn by the actors to introduce aerial effects and flying harnesses to create the illusion of being underwater. The new stage design was made by Bob Crowley, with the world above water made to look like a pop-up book, using cardboard waves and rocks. Following the success of the Dutch production, Casale then worked with California Musical Theatre to present a regional production of the musical in the round. The various changes introduced by Casale in these productions have been incorporated into the official version of the show that Disney Theatrical currently licenses for regional and professional productions.

Productions

Original production

Tryout

The show had a pre-Broadway tryout at the Denver Center for the Performing Arts' Ellie Caulkins Opera House from July 26, 2007 through September 9, 2007. Every seat available for the 6-week run was sold out.

Broadway

The musical began previews on Broadway at the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre on November 3, 2007 and was temporarily shut down on November 10, 2007 due to the 2007 Broadway stagehand strike. The strike ended on November 28, 2007, and the show resumed previews the next day. The official opening date was postponed from December 6, 2007 to January 10, 2008. Jodi Benson and Pat Carroll, who starred in the 1989 animated film as Ariel and Ursula, respectively, attended the opening night ceremony.
Direction was by Francesca Zambello, making her Broadway debut, with choreography by Stephen Mear. Scenic design was by George Tsypin, costumes by Tatiana Noginova and lighting by Natasha Katz. The original cast featured newcomer Sierra Boggess in the title role of Ariel, Sean Palmer as Prince Eric, Brian D'Addario and Trevor Braun alternated as Flounder, Norm Lewis as King Triton, Sherie Rene Scott as Ursula, Tituss Burgess as Sebastian, Tyler Maynard as Flotsam, Derrick Baskin as Jetsam, Jonathan Freeman as Grimsby, and John Treacy Egan as Chef Louis. Notable replacements included Faith Prince as Ursula and Drew Seeley as Prince Eric. The production closed on August 30, 2009, after 50 previews and 685 performances. Thomas Schumacher, producer and president of Disney Theatrical Productions said, "it would be fiscally irresponsible to our shareholders to risk operating losses with such a big show in the historically challenging fall months. We are closing the Broadway production to concentrate on the long future life of this title."

Postponed US Tour

The first national US tour of the musical had previously been scheduled to start in the fall of 2010, but was postponed in August 2014 for the fall of 2015.

Regional US and Canada productions

Regional US productions include the Tuacahn Amphitheatre in Ivins, Utah ; The Muny, St. Louis, Missouri ; the California Musical Theatre, Sacramento ; the Paper Mill Playhouse in Millburn, New Jersey, the Chanhassen Dinner Theatres in Minneapolis-Saint Paul, Minnesota, the Music Hall at Fair Park in Dallas, Texas, and the White Plains Performing Arts Center, New York. There have also been limited tours of regional productions, such as a 2015 tour by Theatre Under the Stars, and a 2016 tour which launched at the 5th Avenue Theatre on November 23, 2016 and made stops in Orlando, Cincinnati, Atlanta and Louisville, among other cities. The production staged at the California Musical Theatre, directed by Glen Casale, is notable for having been performed in the round.
The Canadian premiere opened on August 13, 2014 and ran until August 29th, 2014 at Rainbow Stage, Winnipeg, MB. Colleen Furlan starred as Ariel along with Marc Devigne as Prince Eric and Jennifer Lyon as Ursula. The production was directed by Ann Hodges, choreographed by Linda Garneau and the music director was Elizabeth Baird. The costumes used were made for this original cast by Kansas City Costumes. Another Canadian production opened on November 19, 2014, at the Dunfield Theatre in Cambridge, Ontario, where it ran until December 21, 2014.

International productions

Israel (2010-2011)

A Hebrew production ran in Tel Aviv and other cities in Israel during the 2010/2011 season, directed by Moshe Kaftan and starring Rinat Gabai as Ariel and Guy Zu-Aretz as Prince Eric.

Philippines (2011)

Atlantis Productions staged its own version on the show at the Meralco Theater in Manila, where it ran from November 18, 2011 to December 11, 2011, with Rachelle Ann Go as Ariel and Erik Santos as Prince Eric. The production incorporated Asian elements into its costume design by Eric Pineda. A majority of the cast members played as puppeteer-actors, who controlled wayang or shadow puppets, bunraku or traditional Japanese puppets, and nang kaloung or Cambodian puppets during certain parts of the show.

The Netherlands (2012-2013)

The Dutch version, produced by Stage Entertainment, officially opened on June 16, 2012 at the Nieuwe Luxor Theater in Rotterdam and after touring The Netherlands, it performed a whole season at the Beatrix Theater in Utrecht, from September 5, 2012 to July 7, 2013, playing more than 400 performances. This is the first production of the revised version of the musical, directed by Glen Casale and featuring new set design by Bob Crowley. New songs were written, and some of the songs were omitted. The set design was changed to include flying harnesses and aerial effects to create the underwater illusion, and the world above is depicted with a storybook design. Casale's changes to the production have since been incorporated into the official licensed version of the musical.

Russia (2012-2014)

In Russia The Little Mermaid opened on October 8, 2012 at the Rossiya Theatre Theatre in Moscow, using the Dutch designs and directions by Bob Crowley and Glenn Casale, respectively. Produced by Stage Entertainment, the show took its final curtain call on April 13, 2014, after 502 performances and having seen by more than 700.000 people. This production won two Golden Mask National Theatre Awards, for Best Production for an Operetta/Musical and Best Actress for Manana Gogitidze's portrayal of Ursula.

Japan (2013-)

A Japanese production ran at Shiki Theatre Natsu in Tokyo from April 7, 2013 to April 9, 2017, with the designs and directions used in the Dutch production by Bob Crowley and Glenn Casale, respectively. A live album recording with the original cast was released in 2013. After closing in Tokyo, the show was transferred to Canal City Theatre in Fukuoka from August 11, 2017 to November 4, 2018, and to Hokkaido Shiki Theatre in Sapporo from December 22, 2018 to February 26, 2020. The final performance in Sapporo was initially expected to take place on March 15, 2020, but it was moved forward due to the global pandemic of COVID-19.
Concurrently, a second production ran at Nagoya Shiki Theatre in Nagoya from October 15, 2016 to August 26, 2018. After closing in Nagoya, the show was transferred to Osaka Shiki Theatre in Osaka from October 13, 2018.

Denmark (2014)

After its successful production of Aladdin during the 2012/2013 season, the Fredericia Teater teamed up once again with Disney Theatrical to stage a local version of The Little Mermaid in Denmark, where it ran from July 17 to August 17, 2014 at the Copenhagen Opera House, and from August 28 to October 26, 2014 at the Fredericia Teater.

Belgium (2017-2018)

A Dutch-language production directed by Frank Van Laecke ran at the Flanders Expo in Ghent from a December 13, 2017 to January 7, 2018. After closing in Ghent, the show was transferred to Ethias Arena in Hasselt from April 13–15, 2018.

Brazil (2018)

The first Latin American production premiered on March 30, 2018 at the Teatro Santander in São Paulo, produced by IMM and EGG Entretenimento, and closed on July 29, 2018.

Finland (2019-)

In Finland The Little Mermaid opened on August 29 at the Helsinki City Theatre, under the direction of Samuel Harjanne.

Synopsis of the Broadway Production

Act I

, his nautical expert pilot and adviser, Grimsby, and sailors are aboard a ship at sea, discussing the "mythical" merfolk that supposedly live under the sea. Grimsby wants Eric to return to court to fulfill his birthright as king. However, Eric hears a beautiful voice and commands it to be followed.
Deep on the ocean floor in the merfolk kingdom, a concert in honor of a thwarted coup d'état by the sea witch Ursula is underway, being performed by the daughters of Triton the sea king. King Triton's court composer, Sebastian the crab, has composed a song for girls to perform. However, the youngest daughter, Ariel, is not there for her solo, bringing the concert to a halt. Ariel has forgotten about the concert and is swimming around the surface, admiring a new item for her collection, a fork. She reveals that she is fascinated with the human world. Together with her best friend Flounder, Ariel visits Scuttle and his fellow seagulls to ask about the human things she's collected, and he explains them somewhat erroneously.
Elsewhere, Ursula is planning revenge against her brother, King Triton. She was banished from the palace for using black magic, and tells her minions Flotsam and Jetsam to keep an eye on Ariel, whom she thinks will be the key to getting the crown and trident.
When Ariel returns home, she is berated by King Triton, who is angered to learn that she has been on the surface: King Triton is xenophobic towards humans, believing them to be nothing but savage fish-eaters. Ariel rushes off upset, and King Triton assigns Sebastian to watch over Ariel to make sure she doesn't get into trouble. Ariel sits alone in her grotto, which contains her collection of human things, and imagines living in the human world. Ariel and Flounder meet Scuttle at the surface to see Prince Eric's ship up close. On board, Grimsby tells Eric that he must find a bride and take his place as king. A storm suddenly hits, and Eric is tossed overboard. Ariel saves him from drowning and drags him to shore. She realizes that she is falling in love with him, and vows to find a way to be with him.
After Ariel returns home, her behavior makes her sisters and Flounder suspect that she has fallen in love. On land, Eric is determined to find the woman who saved his life, but the only clue he has is. Sebastian reveals to King Triton that Ariel has saved a human. Triton angrily confronts her about it and uses his trident to destroy Ariel's human collection. After the king leaves, Sebastian tries to comfort Ariel by pointing out the wonders of the undersea world, but she is furious with him for reporting to her father and sneaks off with Flounder during the song. Once she's away, she's stopped by Flotsam and Jetsam, who sweet talk her into seeking help from Ursula.
Ariel goes to meet Ursula, who presents a deal: Ariel will be turned into a human for three days, during which she has to win the kiss of true love from Eric. If she does, she will be human permanently; if not, her soul will belong to Ursula. In exchange, Ariel must give up her voice, which will stay in Ursula's magic nautilus shell. Ariel signs the agreement and sings into the shell, after which she is transformed into a human and swims up to the surface.

Act II

Sebastian and Flounder bring Ariel, newly human, to shore. Scuttle and the seagulls give her a pep talk to raise her spirits and help her get used to her new legs. Eric arrives, but when Ariel tries to talk to him, she cannot speak. Eric brings Ariel back to his palace, where Carlotta, the head mistress, and the maids bathe and dress Ariel. Ariel is fascinated by the human world, while the maids wonder why Eric has brought such a girl to the palace. That night Chef Louis cooks dinner for Ariel, Grimsby, and Eric, and almost cooks Sebastian for the grand finale.
Eric and Ariel spend time together, during which Eric teaches her to dance. Meanwhile, Ursula is anxiously waiting for the three days to end and sends Flotsam and Jetsam to hurry things along. After a tour of the kingdom, Eric takes Ariel on a quiet boat ride through a lagoon. Sebastian and Scuttle watch anxiously and try to create a romantic atmosphere for Eric to kiss Ariel. As they are about to kiss, Flotsam and Jetsam give the boat an "electric shock", scare the animals away, and swim away gloating. As the second day ends, Ariel wishes she had more time and could tell Eric everything, Triton worries about where his daughter has gone and vows to change if she were to return, Sebastian is concerned that Ariel's time as a human is almost up, and Eric still dreams of finding the girl who saved him even though he does not want to lose Ariel. Sebastian returns to the sea and tells an angry King Triton about Ariel's deal with Ursula.
On Ariel's last day as a human, Grimsby has arranged a contest for all foreign princesses to sing for Eric, so he may choose one for his bride. Eric isn't interested in any of them, and Ariel asks to participate, dancing for him. Eric picks her, but before they can embrace, Ursula appears, declaring that the sun has set and Ariel now belongs to her. Flotsam and Jetsam grab Ariel to take her back to the sea. King Triton arrives to confront his sister, agreeing to take Ariel's place. Ursula claims the trident and declares herself queen. She banishes Triton with a wave of the trident. During a battle with Eric's ship, Ariel grabs Ursula's Nautilus shell and regains her voice. Ursula begs Ariel to return the shell to her, as her power is contained within it, and even tries to sweet-talk her into doing so, saying she can turn her human again and reunite her with her prince. Ariel is torn, but ultimately destroys the shell just in time, which destroys Ursula and restores King Triton to his throne and daughter.
Eric and Ariel are reunited on the beach, and Eric asks King Triton for his blessing to marry Ariel. King Triton says that it is Ariel's place to answer, and she accepts Eric's proposal. King Triton then says goodbye to his daughter. In honor of his daughter, Triton declares peace between the humans and merfolk. Ariel and Eric are married and sail away on a ship.

Changes from the 1989 film

In adapting the film into a live stage musical, the following significant changes are made:
;Act I
;Act II
Music by Alan Menken and All Lyrics by Glenn Slater, except as noted:
* Lyrics by Howard Ashman
† Lyrics by Howard Ashman and Glenn Slater
The songs "Where I Belong" and Ursula's reprise of "Her Voice" were cut and the "Finale" was re-worked after the Denver tryout. It included a short reprise of "Fathoms Below". Also, the duet between Ariel and Eric was originally a bit longer with a poetic device about him being her land and her being his sea. Three other songs were cut from the show before the tryout but were available on the leaked demo tape. These included Ursula's "Wasting Away", "All Good Things Must End", and an alternate version of "Poor Unfortunate Souls ".

Reinvented version

Glenn Casale reinvented the show after the Broadway production closed, with an altered songlist, and this later version is the basis for the regional US productions and international productions in the Netherlands, Russia, and Japan. "I Want the Good Times Back" and its reprise are replaced by a song called "Daddy's Little Angel", and "Under the Sea", which was previously performed after Triton destroys Ariel's grotto, is moved to before that sequence. Ariel sings a reprise of "If Only" after the grotto destruction and the "Human Stuff" sequence is dialogue-only. Carlotta is entirely omitted, leaving Grimsby with her lines. In the international productions "Daughters of Triton" is the opening number of the musical, and it leads into Ariel's introduction "The World Above", followed by Eric's introduction "Fathoms Below". In the regional US productions Ariel sings "The World Above" as the show's opening number and there is another reprise of "If Only" in which King Triton laments over the loss of his wife.

Roles and original cast

† Cody Hanford and J.J. Singleton were first cast as Flounder, but had to leave the show shortly after opening because they had grown taller than Sierra Boggess. Trevor Braun and Brian D'Addario replaced them. D'Addario was the vocalist on the original cast recording and performed on the show's opening night.

Original Broadway cast recording

Disney's The Little Mermaid: Original Broadway Cast Recording is the cast album for the 2008 musical. It was released on February 26, 2008 by Walt Disney Records, produced by Alan Menken and features performances from the show's cast, which includes Boggess, Burgess, Scott, Lewis and Korbich. The recording contains twenty-nine songs from the musical. It was nominated for a Grammy Award. It ranked No. 26 when it entered the Billboard 200 albums chart in March 2008, the second highest position for a cast album in 25 years.

Response

Audience response of the targeted family demographic to the musical has been generally positive. Critics gave the show a mixed response, with some praising it, and some calling it "less than witty" and "bloated". Ben Brantley of the New York Times was especially critical, saying that the "charm-free" musical is "stripped of the movie’s generation-crossing appeal. Coherence of plot, endearing quirks of character, even the melodious wit of the original score have been swallowed by an unfocused spectacle." Time Magazine, however, commented, "It was one of the most ravishing things I have ever seen on a Broadway stage."

Awards and nominations